Defense Articles

Designed for automated test systems, PXI-2527 electromechanical switch module is 300 V, 32-channel multiplexer that offers switching capacity up to 300 Vdc/Vac CAT I or up to 2 A. It has scan rate of 140 channels/sec and integrates cold-junction compensation sensor. DMM/Switch Express VI for NI LabVIEW extends LabVIEW Express technology to facilitate multipoint DMM operations and synchronization with any NI multiplexer switch module, either in PXI or SCXI.

AUSTIN, Texas - Sept. 13, 2005 - Engineers now can use the National Instruments (Nasdaq: NATI) PXI-2527 300 V, 32-channel multiplexer along with the new DMM/Switch Express VI to ease development for data-logging and high-channel-count functional test applications. The hardware and software combination seamlessly integrates with the NI PXI-407x FlexDMM series, so engineers can expand their channel counts and make voltage, current, resistance, capacitance and inductance scanning operations with one function call in the National Instruments LabVIEW graphical development environment. The new products are ideal for applications such as temperature scanning and functional test in a variety of industries, including military/aerospace, automotive and consumer electronics.

The NI PXI-2527 multiplexer, which adds to the more than 125 switch configurations from NI, is a 300 V CAT I electromechanical switch module designed for medium- to high-density automated test systems. The module raises the density of PXI high-voltage multiplexers from NI by 500 percent. The multiplexer offers multichannel configurations, including 64×1 1-wire, 32×1 2-wire and 16×1 4-wire, with a switching capacity of up to 300 VDC/300 VAC CAT I (UL/CE certified) or up to 2 A. The module includes a cold-junction compensation sensor in the front-mounting terminal block to assist in thermocouple scanning applications with a scan rate of 140 channels per second.

The new DMM/Switch Express VI for NI LabVIEW extends LabVIEW Express technology to facilitate multipoint DMM operations and synchronization with any NI multiplexer switch module, either in PXI or SCXI. While most synchronized DMM/switch systems require extensive programming to route trigger signals between modules, the DMM/Switch Express VI abstracts this complexity from the engineer for high-level options, such as synchronous mode and full-hardware handshaking, with either PXI backplane or front-panel trigger-signal options. The DMM/Switch Express VI combines the most common setup and module configuration steps into one function call, which greatly simplifies programming.

The NI PXI-2527 multiplexer and DMM/Switch Express VI integrate with a variety of NI software including the LabVIEW graphical development environment, NI TestStand test management software and NI Switch Executive switch management software.

About PXI

PCI eXtensions for Instrumentation (PXI) is an open specification governed by the PXI Systems Alliance (www.pxisa.org) that defines a rugged, CompactPCI-based platform optimized for test, measurement and control.

It is supported by more than 65 member companies and more than 1,150 products are available. PXI products are compatible with the CompactPCI industrial computer standard and offer additional features such as environmental specifications, standardized software and built-in timing and synchronization.

About NI Modular Instruments

NI offers essential technologies for test, which combine high-performance hardware, flexible software and innovative timing and synchronization technology for test and design applications. NI modular instruments offer accurate, high-throughput measurements from DC to 2.7 GHz. The product family includes:

o High-resolution digitizers (up to 24 bits, up to 200 MS/s)

o Signal generators (up to 16 bits, 200 MS/s)

o Digital waveform generator/analyzers (up to 400 Mb/s)

o Digital multimeters (up to 7A,1/2 digits)

o RF vector signal generators and analyzers (up to 2.7 GHz)

o Dynamic signal analyzers (up to 24 bits, 500 kS/s)

o Switching (multiplexers, matrices and general purpose)

About National Instruments

National Instruments (www.ni.com) is a technology pioneer and leader in virtual instrumentation - a revolutionary concept that has changed the way engineers and scientists in industry, government and academia approach measurement and automation. Leveraging PCs and commercial technologies, virtual instrumentation increases productivity and lowers costs for test, control and design applications through easy-to-integrate software, such as NI LabVIEW, and modular measurement and control hardware for PXI, PCI, USB and Ethernet. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, NI has more than 3,600 employees and direct operations in nearly 40 countries. In 2004, the company sold products to more than 25,000 companies in 90 countries. For the past six years, FORTUNE magazine has named NI one of the 100 best companies to work for in America. Readers can obtain investment information from the company’s investor relations department by calling (512) 683-5090, e-mailing nati@ni.com or visiting www.ni.com/nati.

Signal Technology Corporation has announced the receipt of a contract from Sierra Nevada Corporation, Sparks, Nevada, to produce switch matrices for the U.S. Air Force RC-135 Rivet Joint aircraft. The award is valued in excess of $2 million.

Signal Technology’s switch matrix subsystems are key to performing the mission-critical and highly complex task of managing the distribution of multiple voice and data transmissions on a real-time basis. The Rivet Joint is a reconnaissance aircraft that provides the Air Force with on-scene intelligence collection, analysis and dissemination capabilities at both the theater and national levels.

“Our strategy is to emphasize higher value-added products as we exploit the natural synergies between our core electronic component business and our Systems Group’s expertise in complex assemblies,” said Signal Technology Chairman and Chief Executive Officer George Lombard. “The Company’s success in winning this switch matrix award is a result of this strategy, and we look forward to meeting customer requirements for even more complex switch matrix designs in the future.”

President and Chief Operating Officer, John Cotumaccio, said, “This contract award represents another step forward in our drive to create a strong presence for Signal Technology on the Defense Department’s newest and most critical intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) platforms. Together with our recent contract wins in the emerging Homeland Security and Defense market, our selection to provide switch matrices for the Rivet Joint aircraft reinforces our position at a higher point in the ISR value chain, and demonstrates our customers’ confidence in Signal Technology’s engineering and manufacturing capabilities.”

Signal Technology is a developer of state-of-the-art electronic components, subsystems and system solutions for defense and space applications. The Company manufactures a wide range of RF, microwave and millimeter wave products, power conversion systems and power supplies. These devices are used in military communications networks, and systems related to electronic countermeasures, precision guidance, radar, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. The Company sells its products to defense prime contractors worldwide.

Machine guns; an illustrated history of their impact.

Willbanks, James H.

ABC-CLIO

2004

267 pages

$85.00

Hardcover

Weapons and warfare series

UF620

This book explores the early development and evolution of the machine gun and submachine guns as weapon systems, and provides a reference to the significant machine guns and submachine guns of the world. The history recounts early attempts to devise a mechanical machine gun, the development of the Maxim machine gun, and the seminal role played by the machine gun during World War I. The second half of the book provides black and white photographs and specifications for each machine gun model, arranged by decade and country.

Police forces in 28 of Japan’s 47 prefectures will get 1,379 submachine guns by the end of March next year to combat terrorism, the National Police Agency (NPA) said Friday.

It will mark the first time for conventional police to be equipped with such arms.

Special antiterrorism units had been the only forces equipped with submachine guns. They are used by the 200-member Special Assault Team, which has personnel in Tokyo, Osaka, Hokkaido, Kanagawa, Chiba, Aichi and Fukuoka prefectures, the NPA said.

The agency said riot police guarding U.S. bases and nuclear plants in the 28 prefectures will be equipped with the guns. Associated expenditures are included in the NPA’s 9.04 billion yen request for appropriations in a supplementary budget for this fiscal year.

Of the requested sum, 7.54 billion yen will be earmarked for emergency measures to fight terrorism. The agency said it plans to procure more flak jackets, bulletproof helmets and armored vehicles with the money.

The NPA will also establish special units to combat terrorism involving nuclear, biological and chemical weapons in six prefectures by the end of next March, NPA officials said.

Similar units have been set up in Tokyo and Osaka, but new teams will be launched at prefectural police headquarters in Hokkaido, Miyagi, Kanagawa, Aichi, Hiroshima and Fukuoka prefectures.

The units in the eight prefectures will be equipped with detectors for biological weapons for the first time, the NPA said.
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Simplified detectors for such weapons will also be provided to conventional forces in the 28 prefectures, including the eight, that will be armed with submachine guns.

In addition, the agency will purchase bomb detectors and high-performance explosive ordnance disposal devices with the counterterrorism budget, they said.

The Indoor Simulated Marksmanship Trainer (ISMT) is an interactive training system designed for use in a classroom setting. It was developed by FATS Inc., of Suwanee, Ga. Shooters fire laser-fitted infantry weapon simulators to engage threedimensional graphic target sets projected on a large screen. Using Bluetooth wireless technology, the Bluefire upgrade eliminates the tether that was attached to the simulation system to provide feedback to trainees and instructors.

SCOPE

As a part of an upgrade to the ISMT system, the Marine Corps ordered approximately 1,200 Bluefire simulators and 4,000 optical devices. The total value of the contract is more than $12 million. The Bluefire systems will be compatible across all of die ISMT platforms.

TIMELINE

The first Bluefire weapons and optic devices were delivered to the Weapons Training Battalion at Marine Corps Base, Quantico, Va., in March. The balance began fielding in April, first targeting the Marine bases at Camp Pendleton, Calif., and Camp Lejuene, N.C.

WHO’S IN CHARGE

Phyllis Pearce, program manager at FATS Inc., has been with the company for nearly 20 years. She spent the last five as a program manager working directly on U.S. military programs, including the production and fielding of the Marine Corps Reserves systems and the Marine security Guard system and weapons.

“We are bringing new technology to these systems because the Marines are getting new equipment that they are expected to use, such as. optics. We are putting the optics on our Bluefire weapons, enabling Marines to train with those new devices in environments like range courses, closecombat courses and other simulated scenarios. Marines can remediate their skills as needed, and when they go out into the real world, they’re qualified.

The Marine can bring in any optic, like Image Intensified optics, and we can put a filter on the system to replicate what he or she would see.

All the weapons we’d delivered up to this point were tethered. Recently, using Bluetooth technology, we have taken that cord away. We can simulate scenarios for certain situations that are filmed and loaded onto the system, such as clearing a house or a checkpoint operation at a border.

We have the capability of linking multiple systems to create a training regimen for four to five Marines. Each Marine could have a different weapon; some could have responsibility for indirect fire, some could have machine guns, some could be at close range. Depending on what presents itself in that virtual battle space, each one would have a particular role.

When combatants are in a stressful experience, they will fall back on their training. So what we’re doing here is [eliminating] whatever bad habits they may have, so they will instinctively do the right thing. Feedback from instructors is immediate.

We want to expand our role with the services to other parts of the battle space. We can replicate the motions of ships or Humvees. We can do a dome application to put a soldier in a room with 360-degree environment. Technology is being refreshed every few months. Bluetooth is one of those. We continually look at ways to incorporate new technologies to improve our training systems.

“I engaged the enemy with that new canister round at 1,100 meters but it had no effect!” (1) Live and virtual gunnery training, prior to deployment and employment could have prevented this, but we have struggled to implement either. As the user representative for the Abrams fleet and armor crewman, part of our charter is to manage and prioritize improvements to the Abrams training aids, devices, simulators, and simulations (TADSS). We struggled to get canister added to the standards in training commission (STRAC); it is now there, even if limited to only two rounds per crew.

Currently, Abrams gunnery devices are being upgraded with the canister round capability. Ideally, this should have been completed 6 months prior to fielding the canister round in Iraq, but the round was rushed to theater based on an urgent operational needs statement (ONS). This is but one example of the improvements we have been working on with our acquisition partners in the Product Manager (PM) Abrams Office, Warren, Michigan, and Program Executive Office Simulations Training (PEO STRI), Orlando, Florida.

Several new capabilities are being made available to the field and the Armor School, which include additions to the M1A2 SEP advanced gunnery training system (AGTS) and later to the M1A1 conduct of fire trainer (COFT)-AGTS, an investment of over $7 million. PM Ground Combat Tactical Trainers (PM GCTT)/ PEO STRI recently added a military operations on urbanized terrain (MOUT) database for section and platoon training to the M1A2 SEP AGTS. The U.S. Marine Corps developed this database for their M1A1 COFT-AGTS using Joint Readiness Training Center urban terrain. The Army borrowed this software and integrated it into the AGTS. It is not perfect; an unaware tank commander will hit buildings or poles, if he is not careful with the tank’s main gun orientation, and end the exercise sooner than planned. By doctrine, it is limited to section or platoon as the Armor Center does not support tanks operating individually in urban operations for survivability reasons.

The PM GCTT also added a Korean terrain database to the M1A2 SEP AGTS. In its latest software upgrade to the AGTS, PM GCTT will add five special-purpose exercises for canister training using the following databases: desert, European, Korean, and urban. With this upgrade, crews will quickly learn when it is appropriate to use canister as they learn the round’s capabilities and limitations. During these special-purpose exercises, the crew will have access to the MOUT database. The AGTS software will also be upgraded with the joint combat identification marking system (JCIMS), the M829A3 sub-designation, and later be aligned with the new gunnery manual yet to be published. (2) Lastly, a long-range goal is to upgrade many of the AGTSs to the mobile configuration. Two mobile AGTSs (MAGTS) are in Baghdad, Iraq; one is at Fort Bliss, Texas, for the 1st Cavalry; and one is at Fort Carson, Colorado, for the 4th Infantry Division. Another four have been contracted for 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment at Fort Hood, and one is scheduled for delivery in 2008 to Fort Bliss, Texas, to support the experimental brigade combat team and the 1st Armored Division.

The M1A1 COFT-AGTS is also scheduled to be upgraded alongside the AGTS with a more complex “Middle Eastern” MOUT database, which was also developed by the U.S. Marine Corps. The image generator in the current AGTS cannot process this database and requires additional funding for a future upgrade; the M1A1 COFT-AGTS will have new image generators installed, completing a re-hosting effort that began several years ago. The M1A1 COFT-AGTS will also finally get some of its initial production “bugs” corrected. Beginning in April 2007, the COFT-AGTS will have the correct .50-caliber sound; a more realistic limit on the amount of .50-caliber ammunition available; long-range, special-purpose exercises limited to below 4,000 meters in accordance with the tank’s limitations; corrected gunner’s auxiliary sight reticle size and color; corrected forward unity periscope; and all of the improvements highlighted for the AGTS.

Work has also started to add the canister capability to the close combat tactical trainer.

Other TADSS improvements for the armor force and Armor School are forthcoming. The PM procured 61 improved through site video recording (TSVR) systems primarily used with the M1A2 SEP. These new systems are being fielded and Fort Bliss and Fort Carson will each receive 14; Fort Hood will receive 28; and Fort Benning and Fort Knox will each receive 2. The system will work on any variant of Bradley or tank, but is required to capture the commander’s independent thermal viewer (CITV) imagery of the M1A2 SEE The system is in final testing stages and requires additional hardware to work with the Bradley. Once this work is complete, over the next 6 to 12 months, these systems will be available at the fielded installations’ training support centers (TSC) for use on gunnery tables for video augmented after-action reviews.

Spanish shotgun manufacturer ComLanber S.A. has formed Lanber USA, headquartered in Blakely, Ga., to provide distribution, service and marketing for its line of over-and-under and semiautomatic shotguns.

The new U.S. facility will import and service Lanber over-and-under Models 2065, 2081, 2082, 2085, 2087 and the Sporting Clays Model 2097. Also available are the Lanber semiautomatics in Models 2532, 2533 and 2534. All Lanber shotguns are warranted for five years and are now available for immediate delivery to U.S. dealers.

To become a Lanber USA dealer, contact Brent Matthews at 1-800-673-0196.

Smith & Wesson officially confirmed in mid-November the strong rumors that it would soon introduce shotguns to its offerings. That will happen at the SHOT Show, where the company will debut two lines of shotguns.

The Smith & Wesson Elite Series will initially consist of the Elite Gold side-by-side 20-gauge and the Elite Silver over-and-under 12-gauge. In the Smith & Wesson 1000 Series of semiautos, S & W is offering shotguns in 29 configurations. The shotguns, designed by Smith & Wesson, are being made in Turkey.

“By partnering with seasoned veterans and securing dedicated facilities in Turkey that have been built entirely for our use, we are entering the market with new products very quickly, with a high degree of quality and with no investment of capital,” said Mike Golden, S & W president and CEO.

S & W will showcase the new shotguns at its main SHOT Show booth (#3175).

Smith & Wesson’s introduction of shotguns comes as no surprise. Company officials have openly discussed their goals to aggressively pursue new markets. First came the M & P15 rifles, now shotguns. Hunting rifles will be next.

“We continue to explore opportunities in the market for hunting rifles, as well,” Golden said.

Introspection vindicated; an essay in defense of the perceptual model of self knowledge.

Elshof, Gregg Ten. (Ashgate new critical thinking in philosophy)

Ashgate Publishing Co., [c]2005

97 p.

$69.95

In this work of epistemology, Elshof (philosophy, Biola U., California) conducts a critical assessment of the perceptual/observational model of introspection by examining the knowledge humans have of themselves, and whether such knowledge is a species of perception. He begins by analyzing the significance and pervasiveness of introspection and proceeds to his Perpetual Model of Introspection (PMI), describing its historical proponents and central thesis. He compares PMI to other models of self-knowledge, and summarizes early and contemporary arguments against it, including those from Lyons, Searle and Dennett, and follows with an examination of Shoemaker’s critiques, comparing him to Hume. In closing, Elshof maintains that despite the efforts of theorists since the onset of the twentieth century, PMI is the most natural way of thinking about the knowledge humans have of their own minds.

Like all my major life changes, my transformation began with lesbian relationship drama. My girlfriend went on vacation, remained incommunicado for a week, then phoned during a layover at a Midwestern airport and unceremoniously dumped me. The injustice was palpable-how dare she treat me so shabbily after all we’d been through!

I cursed her name as I walked my rottweiler around Brooklyn, miles passing as I vowed revenge. After a few weeks, my anger-fueled marches had burned 10 pounds. Although by lesbian standards I wasn’t even close to huge, I was definitely overweight. Years of nesting with my girlfriend, watching movies, and downing pints of Chunky Monkey had ballooned me to a size 17.

But when I realized my thighs didn’t chirp when I wore corduroy, my plan came lucidly into focus. Any gay man will tell you that the best revenge is looking fabulous. I’d have my ex kicking herself for leaving me.

In 2000, I’d joined a Hoteikan dojo, taking the occasional kickboxing class, gaining flexibility but not losing weight. I’d slacked off, but I began attending classes again. When my schedule interfered with kickboxing, my classmate Eileen convinced me to join karate.

I was reluctant to try what I saw. It seemed like a pissing contest for teenage boys with a Jackie Chan complex. Still, I needed to work out, if just to jettison stress. I started karate and–apart from occasional confusion over Japanese commands–found I was actually pretty good. My classmates surprised me with a new karate gi. I love drag, and dressing up in those white pajamas sealed the deal.

I threw myself into it, channeling my rage into kumite, or sparring. My mind was quiet, almost meditative, when I did kata, a series of moves for defeating an invisible opponent. I learned how to strike, how to kick, and how to block. With every new defense I realized how little I knew. It made me humble.

It also made me stop plotting revenge. When my ex moved, I helped her paint. I found her paint-splattered Calvin Kleins among my painting clothes and began wearing them. They were tight but fit better than my fatty pants, by now several sizes too big.

Soon, those Calvins were my fatty pants. “You’re shrinking away,” my ex said. I just smiled.

Each month took with it five more pounds of my adipose armor. The punches and blocks toned my shoulders and arms. Holding deep karate stances made my legs and calves strong. My ass morphed into two perfectly round orbs strong enough to crack walnuts. After a year I had lost nearly 50 pounds. Eight months later I’d kept it off. And although I’m less than anxious to get into another long-term relationship, all this exercise has kept my sheets as hot as my libido.

For me, fighting is the best exercise. It relieves stress and boosts my endorphin levels, making me naturally happy. Learning new techniques keeps my mind busy, turning working out into play. Losing weight took a lot of strain off my body. It’s wonderful that lesbians are less body-obsessed than the mainstream population, but we still need to take care of ourselves.

“Lesbians do smoke more, use alcohol at higher rates than heterosexual women … and tend to have higher weight. These things put us at risk for poor health outcomes, including cancer but also heart disease,” says Amari S. Pearson-Fields, deputy director of the Mautner Project, a national lesbian health organization.

Learning how to defend myself also made me less willing to be a victim. Although Brooklyn is a relatively safe place to live, there are people who want to harm you because you’re different. (When it comes to muggers, my sensei Tom Carrano advised, “Money and jewelry are replaceable; your life is much more valuable than any possession.”)

It’s great to have fighting skills, but it’s even better if you never have to use them in the street. Sensei Carrano teaches how to avoid or deflect violence using verbal skills. These strategies are also stressed at Brooklyn’s Center for Anti-Violence Education, a dojo geared toward women that specifically reaches out to communities affected by violence, including lesbians and transgender people. “Built into the sport are ways to protect yourself and build awareness of your environment,” says cofounder Annie Ellman. “But violence is a societal issue, and it takes a community to work against.”

Whether you live in a big city or a small town in America’s heartland, you will find a dojo nearby. Parents send their kids to karate to increase their concentration and to protect them from bullies. It works the same for adults. Especially for lesbians, karate can be a tough, sexy, and empowering way to get and stay in shape.